Mail catching and delivering device.



No. 895,203. PATEN'TED AUG. 4, 1908.

R. R. R0121. MAIL GATCHING AND DELIVERING DEVICE.

APPLIGA'I'IOH FILED DEC. 26, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

auuudcz No. 895,203. PA'I'BNTED AUG. 4, 1908. R. R. ROTH.

MAIL CATGEIN G AND DELIVERING DEVICE.

APPLIGATIQH FILED 1130.26, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

ROBERT RAY ROTH, OF EASTOX, MARYLAND.

MAIL CATCHING AND DELIVERING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 4, 1908.

Application filed December 26, 1907. Serial No. 408,096.

To all idiom "it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT RAY Born, a citizen of the United States, residing at Easton, in the county of Talbot and State of Maryland, have invented a new and useful Mail Catching and Delivering Device, of which the following is a specification.

This invention. relates to mechanism for delivering and receiving mail bags, and its principal object is to provide novel means for supporting a bag from the side of a car,

said means being capable of quickly releasing the bag upon moving into cooperative relation with a crane located atthe side of the track.

Anothcr object is to provide bag holding means which will positively hold the bag against accidental release and the operation of which is in no sense retarded by the Weight of the supported ba A still further ob ect is to provide novel means for holding the bag support extended beyond the wall of the car, said holding means being disposed to be released by the means employed for releasing the bag.

A still further objectis to provide means for receiving the bag from the crane, said means being mounted to swing under the impulse imparted to it by the engagement of the moving bag therewith, there being mechanism employed, however, for initially retarding the rotation of the engaging means to insure the proper actuation of the bag releasing mechanism.

Another object is to provide mechanism of this character which can be readily reversed so as to deliver or receive mail from the same side of the car when said car is moving in either direction.

A further object is to provide simple and eflicicnt means for locking the mechanism,

which is upon the car, against the side of said car immediately subsequent to the delivery of a bag.

A further object is to provide means for holding the bag against. undesirable movement while supported by the delivery mechanism- \Yith these and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel features of construction and arrangement of arts, hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed outin the appended claims, it being the structure may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a perspective view of the delivering and receiving mechanism, the bag being shown by dotted lines. Fig. 2 is an enlarged elevation of the bag supporting mechanism carried by the car, a portion of the bag being removed and one of the bag engaging plates being broken away. Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on the line 33, Fig. 2. Fig. l is an elevation on line 4-t, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a section on line 55, Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of bag engaging means used in connection with the delivering mechanism. 7 is an elevation of a portion of the crane and showing the pivotal portion of the revolublcarm mounted thereon. Fig. 8 is a transverse section through the parts shown in Fig. .7.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference, A designates a car body in the door aof which isarranged a rock bar 1 extending transversely of the door and mounted in suitable bearing; 2. This bar carries the usual bag gripping fork 3 having a combined handle and counterbalance 4 extending into the car whereby the same may be conveniently manipulated. This fork can be made reversible so as to properly engage a suspended bag when the car is traveling in either direction.

Secured to the W1 ll of the car adjacent opositc sid s of the door a are superposed tubuar brackets 6 and 7 each of which has notches or recesses 8 and 9 in its upper end for the purpose hereinafter explained.

An arm 10 extends outwardly from the car and has a n eclc or trunnion 11 extending downward from one end and journalcd within the bracket- 7. A lug 12 extends from this trunnion and is designed to normally rest upon the bracket 7 but, when the arm is swung outwardly from the door of the car this lug will be brought against a shoulder 13 constituting an extension of one wall of the notch 9 and will drop into said notch and thus lock the arm extended at right angles to the car. mThe notch 8 is so positioned that when the lug'l. is raised out of notch 9 and shifted so as'to drop into the notch 8 the arm 10 will be held practically parallel with the wall of the car. A flange 14 is formed upon understood that various changes in the the bracket- 7 below notches S and 9 and is form ro ortlons size and minor details of i for the .111 )ose hereinafter set forth..

' upper bracket is also formed with a longitufrom the end portion of the neck 16. This portions of arm and brace are preferprovided upon the rock bar to prevent longiand lift the rock bar and arm 10 so as to each face.

A brace 15 extends upwardly from the outer end of arm 10 and is preferably formed integral therewith, said brace being provided at its free end with a downwardly extending neck or trunnion 16 bearing within the bracket 6. A lug 17 extends from this trunnion and is designed to drop into either the notch 9 or the notch 8 formed therein, according to the position occupied by the arm 10 and brace 15. The notches in this upper bracket are arranged in the same manner as are those in the lower bracket 7. Said dinal slot 18 and a holding pin 19 extends slot 18, when arm 10 is in a predeter mined position, permits the pin 19 to slide upward therethrough and this allows arm 10 and its brace 15 to be removed. The inner ably connected by means of a brace 20.

Members 21 extend downward from the arm 10 and constitute bearings for a rock bar 22. Suitable means such as collars 23 are tudinal movement thereof, and a tripping arm 24 depends from the outer end of the bar. At an intermediate point the rock bar is provided with a recess 25, the longitudinal wall of which is c noaved transversely as shown particularly in Fig. 3, the longitudinal center of this wall being disposed along the longitudinal axis of the rock bar.

Plates .26 are secured in any suitable manner to opposite faces of arm 10 and to each of these plates is hingedly connected a supporting finger or strap 27 either one of which is designed to rest loosely within the recess with its free end bearing upon the longitudinal center thereof. It is to be understood that either of these fingers can be placed within the recess but it is not intended to so position both of them at the same time.

A cam 28 is secured to the inner end of the rock bar 22 and bears upon flange 14. This cam, as indicated in Fig. 4, is so shaped that when the rock bar is partly rotated 1n either direction the cam will bear upon the flange raise the lugs 12 and 17 out of the notches 9 should they be seated therein. A spring 29 is detachably secured at its ends to the arm 10 and to the wall of the car and it is designed to hold said arm normally in position against the car and with lugs 12 and 17 seated in notches 8.

Buttons 30 are secured upon 0 posite faces of arm 10, there being preferabli' two upon These buttons are designeu to project into an ular key-hole slots 31 formed m a plate 32 which may thus be detachably fastened to either face of the arm 10. This plate has elongated fingers 33 depending therefrom and they are for the purposes hereinafter set forth.

As indicated in Fig. 1 two sets of brackets 6 and 7 are rovided, one set being located adjacent eacli side of the door a so that the arm 10 and the parts connected thereto may be readily fastened to the car at either side of the door so as to permit the mechanism to operate in the same manner when the car is moving in either direction.

The means employed for receiving a bag from the delivering mechanism carried by the car consists of a standard 34 which may be mounted on the platform 35. This standard has collars 36 and 37 arranged thereon and revolubly mounted between these collars is a sleeve 38 formed at one end of an arm 39 which extends at right angles from the standard and is provided with a double fork 40, such for example, as shown in Fig. 1 which is designed to engage a bag supported from the arm 10 whether said bag is approaching the fork from either direction. Anti-friction devices such as balls 41 are preferably interposed between sleeve 38 and collar 37 so as to permit the arm 39 to readily swing in a circle as a result of the impulse imarted to it by the sudden contact of a moving bag with the fork 40. In order that this movement of the arm 39 may be initially retarded to a sufficient degree to insure the proper actuation by arm of the bag releasmg mechanism on the car, a roller 42 is interposed between sleeve 38 and collar 37, the same being located at one end of a spring 43 fastened to an extension 44 on collar 37. This roller is held projected by the spring 43 into a recess 45 formed in the lower face of sleeve 38. 'Whon the roller is thus positioned the arm 39 is extended toward the track. A brace 46 preferably extends downward from arm 39 and has a ring 47 at its free end which loosely embraces the standard 34 and is designed to rotate thereon.

\Vhen it is desired to deliver a bag from a car the delivering mechanism is positioned adjacent that side of the car door a nearest the rear end of the car, this de ending of course upon the direction in whic 1 the car is moving. The bag to be delivered, and which has been indicated by dotted lines at B in 1, is then supported by inserting one of the fingers 27 into the ring I) located at the upper end of the bag. Said finger is then p aced with its free end in the recess 25 as indicated in Fig. 3, the ring 1) bearing against the adjoining bearings 21 (see Fig. 2), this being ermitted in view of the fact that these apart slightly less than the diameter of the ring. This operation is performed while arm 10 IS in position partly across the door aand as soon as the bag has been secured in the manner described arm 10 is released and spring 29 will swing it outwardly until lugs 12 and 17 come into contact with the shoulders 13, whereupon the arm 10 and its brace .arings are disposed at .a distance 15 will drop by gravity so as to seat said lugs witlnn the notches 9. Arm 10 will herefore be held extended at right angles to the 5 against the fork 40 will cause the same to promptly swing horizontally with standard 34 as a center and the released bag will thus be swung away from the car. It is of course to be understood that roller 42 bears within recess withsuflicient force to hold arm 39 in place while tripping the arm 2- hen the bag B is brought into position within the fork 40 the force exerted thereby will be sufficient to swing the arm 39 and cause roller 42 to become depressed and thus shift it out of the recess 45. Simultaneously with the release of bag B in the manner hereinbefore set forth the cam 28 is swung with the bar 22 so as to push against the flange 14. The amount of rotation necessary to release bag B will also be sufficient to move the cam 28 the distance necessary to lift bar 22 and arm 10 such a distance as to raise the studs 12 and 17 out of notches 9. As soon as these studs have been raised out of these notches and above the shoulders 13 the tensioned spring 29 will swing arm 10 inwardly toward the car wall until the studs are brought above notches 8 into which they will promptly drop and thus lock the apparatus against the side of the car.

\Vhile bag B is suspended by one of the fingers 27 the rear portion thereof contacts with the fingers 33 which act as braces to prevent the bag from swinging rearwardly as a result ofthe forward movement of the car and the resistance offered by the atmosphere.

Although mechanism has been shown whereby the delivered bag can be engaged by a fork 40, it is to be understood that if preferred a fixed arm may be used instead of the swinging arm 39, said arm being merely employed to .trip the depending arm 24 whereupon the. released bag will fall to the ground or into a bin or other suitable receptacle provided for it.

Importance is attached to the fact that the fingers 27 are designed to rest at their free ends upon the longitudinal center of the wall of recess 25, said longitudinal center alining with the axis of the rock bar 22. As a result. of this arrangement it will be apparcut that when the rock bar is partially rotated to release a bag it does not lift the finger or consequently raise the bag supported by it. The apparatus can thus be very readily operated. It will also be seen that it is absolutely impossible for the bag to become accidentally released from its supporting structure because this necessitates the rotation of bar 22.

By duplicating the brackets at opposite sides of the car door and by constructing the arm 10 in the manner described it becomes possible to place said arm at either side of the door so that it will operate in the same manner when the car is moving in either direction and will at no time obstruct the door of the car.

The pin 19 heretofore referred to constltutes efficient means to prevent the arm 10 and its brace 15 from jumping out of their brackets 6 and 7. \Vhen, however, this pin 19 is swung in position below the slot 18, as when the arm 10 is extending across door a, said arm and its brace can be lifted out of engagement with its bracket.

'What is claimed is:

1. In apparatus of the character described delivery mechanism comprising a movable arm, means for holding the arm against movement, bag engaging means carried by the arm, and revoluble means upon the arm for simultaneously releasing the arm from its holding means and unlocking said bag engaging means.

2. In apparatus of the character described. delivery mechanism com rising a s ring actuated arm, means for iolding sait arm against the stress of the spring, hag engaging means carried by the arm, and a revoluble device upon the arm for simultaneously unlocking said means and releasing the arm from its holding means.

In a device of the character described, delivery mechanism com )rising a spring actuated arm, means for iolding the arm against the stress of the spring, bag engaging means pivotally comiected to and depending from the arm, a revoluble locking device normally supporting said bag engaging means and carried by the arm, and a rcvolublc releasing cam upon the arm for engagement with the holding means.

4. In apparatus of the character described, delivery mechanism comprising a spring actuated arm, means for engaging the arm to hold it against the stress of the spring, a bag engaging member pivotally connected to the arm and depending therefrom, a rock device carried by the arm and having a recess for the reception of said member, an arm lifting device carried by the rock device, and a tripping arm depcnding from said device.

5. In apparatus of the character described, delivery mechanism comprising a spring actuated pivot arm, means disposed to engage the arm to hold it against the stress of the spring, a recessed rock device carried by i l i the arm, a pivoted bag engaging member carried by the arm and having one end normally seated within the recess along the longitudinal axis of the rock device, and means carried by said device for disengaging the ar 3. and holding means.

6. In apparatus of the character described,

delivery mechanism comprising a spring actuated horizontally movable pivoted arm, means for holding said arm against the stress of the spring. a rock device mounted upon the arm and having a recess, a bag engaging member pivotally connected to the arm, the free end of said member being disposed to rest within the recess along the axis of the rock device, and means carried by the rock device for unlocking the arm.

7. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a standard having an outstanding member, of mechanism comrising a spring actuated arm, means for liolding said arm against the stress of the spring, a rock device carried by the arm and having a recess, a bag engaging member piv otally connected to the arm and disposed to rest at one end within the recess and along the axis of the rock device, a tripping arm extending from said device and into the path of the projecting member of the stanoard, and means carried by the rock device for unlocking the arm from its holding means.

8. The combination with a standard, a bag receiving member mounted to swing thereon, and means for initially retarding the movement of said member of delivery mechanism comprising a spring actuated arm, means for holding said arm normally against the stress of its spring, bag engaging means carried by said arm, a locking device for said means and disposed to be actuated by the rojecting member of the standard to re case said means, and means carried by the locking de vice for disengaging the arm from its holding means simultaneously with the release of the bag.

9. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a standard, and a mem ber projecting therebeyond; of delivery mechanism comprising a pivotally mounted spring actuated arm, bag holding and releasing mechanism carried thereby, a cam mov' able with the releasing mechanism, means for holding the arm against the stress of its spring, a fixed bearing for the cam, and means operated by the cooperation of the outstanding member and the releasing mechanism for actuating the cam to lift the arm out of engagement with its holding means.

10. In apparatus of the character described, delivery mechanism comprising a spring actuated swinging arm, bearings therefor, means carried by the arm for engaging the hearings to lock the arm in a predetermined position and against the stress of the spring, and bag engaging and releasing mechanism carried by the arm and disposed to lift i osition; of means for automatically actuatmg the arm when released from its locking means, bag engaging and releasing means carried by the arm, and means operating simultaneouslytherewith for lifting the arm to disengage it from the bearings.

12. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a supporting structure; of an upwardly movable bag supporting member hingedly connected to said structure, means for automatically swinging said member in one direction, means disposed to be automatically engaged by said member for holding said member against the action of said actuating means, bag releasing means carried by said member, and means 0 erated thereby for lifting said member to re case it from its holding means.

13. In apparatus of the character described delivery mechanism comprising a spring actuated arm, bag supporting and releasing mechanism carried thereby, means for holding the arm against the action of the spring, and lifting means operated by the releasing mechanism for simultaneously unlocking or disengaging the arm and its hold mg means.

14. In apparatus of the character described dehvery mechanism comprising a spring operated arm, bag engaging and releasing mechanism carried thereby, depending bracing devices detachibly carried by the arm, means for holding the arm against the action of its spring, and means for releasing the arm from its holding means.

15. In apparatus of the character described delivery mechanism comprising an arm, bag engaging means movably connected to the arm, a revoluble locking device normally supporting said. means and carried by the arm, and a tripping arm extending from said device.

16. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a supporting structure; of an arm extending therefrom, bag engaging means movably connected to and depending from the arm, a locking device carried by the arm for supporting said means, means for rotating said device to release said bag engagingmeans, and a bag bracing device extending from the arm.

17. The combination with a supporting structure having a door; of a spring actuated arm, bag engaging means carried by the arm, a locking device upon the arm for engaging said means, means for holding the arm against the action of its spring, means operated by the movement of the locking device for lifting the arm from engagement with its hold mg means, and means upon the structure for between the notches: of an arm pivotally mounted within one of the bearing members, a brace extending from said arm and removably mounted within the other bearing member, separate engaging means carried by the arm and bracefor successively engaging the notches in the respective bearing members, said shoulders being normally disposed-in the path of said means, a spring for actuating the arm and brace, bag engaging and releasing means carried by the arm, and means oper ated by said mechanism for shifting the engaging means out of the notches within the bearing members to release the arm.

19. The combination with a b aring member having a notch therein, and a fixed flange extending from said member; of an arm pivotally mounted within said member, an engaging device carried by the arm and disposed to be seated within the notch, bag engaging and releasing mechanism carried by the arm. and a cam movable with said mechanism and bearing upon the flange to lift the arm and remove its engaging means from the notch, and means for swinging the arm when raised by the cam.

20. In apparatus of the character described the combination with an arm and tag holding means carried thereby, of a plurality of-bag bracing devices depending from and detachably connected to the arr-1.

21. In apparatus of the character described delivery mechanism comprising an each member having arm, bag engaging means carried thereby, and bracing means for the bag comprising a strip detachably connect d to the arm and a plurality of depending fingers upon the strip and disposed to back the bag.

22. In apparatus of the character described delivery meehanism comprising a bearing member, an arm mounted thereon, means carried by the arm for engaging the bearing member to lock said arm in a predetermined position, a cam carried by said means, means cooperating with the cam to lift said arm when the cam i partly rotated, and means for actuating the cam.

23, In apparatus of the character de- -scribed delivery mechanism comprising a bearing member, an arm mounted thereon, means carried by the arm for engaging the bearing member to lock said arm in a predetermined position, a cam carried by said means, means cooperating with the cam to lift said arm when the cam is partly rotated, means for actuating the cam, and means for automatically swinging the arm upon its bearing member immediately subsequent to the actuation of the cam.

2i. In apparatus of the character described delivery mechanism comprising an arm, a recessed reek device carried by the arm, a bag engaging member movably connected to the arm and having one end normally seat d within the recess illd along the longitudinal axis of the rock device, and a trip device carried by the rock device.

in testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ROBERT RAY ROTH.

Witnesses:

E. LAMBERT, C. E. FRIcKLE. 

